December 17, 2021
SEC Proposes Amendments to Rule 10b5-1 and Enhanced Disclosures Relating to Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plans in Issuer Reports and Certain Section 16 Reporting Forms
On December 15, 2021, the SEC proposed amendments to Rule 10b5-1 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, relating to insider trading arrangements. The SEC indicated that the proposed amendments aim to address critical gaps in the SEC’s insider trading regime and to help shareholders understand when and…
November 23, 2021
SEC Proposes Rule to Increase Transparency for Securities Lending Transactions
On November 18, 2021, the SEC published proposed Exchange Act Rule 10c-1 (Rule), which would require any person that loans a security (including investment companies, banks, insurance companies and pension funds) on behalf of itself or another person to report the material terms of those securities lending transactions…
November 12, 2021
SEC Division of Examinations Issues Risk Alert on Investment Adviser Fee Calculations
On November 10, 2021, the staff (Staff) of the SEC’s Division of Examinations (Division) issued a Risk Alert (Risk Alert or 2021 Risk Alert) based on observations from the Division’s recently concluded national initiative (Initiative) that focused on advisory fees charged by registered investment advisers. The Staff conducted…
November 11, 2021
SEC Division of Examinations Staff Issues Risk Alert for Advisers that Provide Electronic Investment Advice
On November 9, 2021, the staff of the SEC’s Division of Examinations (Staff) issued a risk alert highlighting common compliance issues that it observed while conducting examinations of advisers that provide automated digital investment advisory services, also known as robo-advisory services (Alert). During each exam,…
November 8, 2021
SEC Proposes Amendments to Update Electronic Filing Requirements
On November 4, 2021, the SEC published proposed amendments to update electronic filing requirements. The amendments would apply to a variety of issuers, investment advisers, institutional investment managers and others who currently file or submit paper reports to the SEC on EDGAR or the Investment Adviser Registration Depository.
November 8, 2021
SEC Staff Issues Bulletin Setting Forth Views on Shareholder Proposal Rule; New Approach Expected to Result in More ESG Proposals
On November 3, 2021, the staff of the SEC’s Division of Corporate Finance (Staff) issued a legal bulletin regarding Rule 14a-8 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that rescinds certain prior legal bulletins and issues new guidance related to certain bases for the exclusion…
June 3, 2021
SEC and CFTC File Civil Complaints Against Fund Sponsor and its Portfolio Managers and Enter into Settlement Agreement with Chief Risk Officer on Related Allegations
On May 27, 2021, the SEC and CFTC filed civil complaints against LJM Funds Management Ltd. and LJM Partners Ltd. (each of which is a registered investment adviser and commodity pool operator; collectively, LJM), and two LJM portfolio managers, Anthony Caine and Anish Parvataneni relating to an options…
March 15, 2021
Additional Semi-Transparent ETF Sponsor Receives Amended Exemptive Relief to Use “Custom Baskets”
The SEC recently granted amended exemptive relief for Blue Tractor, a sponsor of semi-transparent ETFs (ST ETFs), to permit ST ETFs that rely on Blue Tractor’s relief to create and redeem creation units with authorized participants (APs) in exchange for “custom baskets” (Amended Relief). This relief is similar to amended…
March 8, 2021
SEC Releases FAQs on New Rules Establishing Updated Regulatory Framework for Fund Valuation Practices
The staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (Staff) has released responses to frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to the adoption of rules 2a-5 and 31a-4 under the 1940 Act (Rules). Rule 2a-5 establishes requirements for satisfying a fund board’s obligation to determine fair value in good faith for…
March 5, 2021
Mutual Fund Sponsor Receives Approval for First Mutual Fund to ETF Conversion
Two mutual funds advised by Guinness-Atkinson, Guinness Atkinson Asia Pacific Dividend Builder Fund and Guinness Atkinson Dividend Builder Fund (Guinness Atkinson Funds), recently received a declaration of effectiveness from the SEC on a Form N-14 registration statement to convert into SmartETFs Asia Pacific Dividend Builder ETF and SmartETFs Dividend Builder…